HE SAID HELLO TO ME

4/27/26

On my way to the Dallas Arboretum this morning, the Lord met me in my truck. It wasn’t an audible voice, but it was undeniable. I felt His presence so strongly, I cried out loud, I feel his prescence as if He was sitting right beside me. In that quiet moment, He began to show me how much He had changed my life—how He had pulled me out of darkness and breathed life back into my soul. I knew in my heart that He was asking me to share my testimony, not for my own glory, but to inspire others and bring hope and salvation to those who feel lost like I once did.

I grew up in a broken home. My parents did not get along, and our family was often separated because someone was always away in another country trying to provide for us. Even though our physical needs were met, my emotional needs were not. I grew up longing for love—especially the l love and attention of a father figure. That longing created a deep void in my heart.

In that emptiness, the enemy began to plant lies in my mind. I started to believe false labels about myself. I believed that in order to receive love and attention, I had to give my body away. I became convinced that pleasing men physically was the only way I would ever feel wanted. Eventually, I began dressing in ways that would attract attention from men. I was searching for affirmation, for validation, for someone to tell me I mattered.

For six years, while traveling for work and living away from home, I sank deeper into that lifestyle. I devoted myself to pleasure and lust. I’ve been using apps like Grindr and Sniffies to hook up with men, often without even asking their names, because I’m really just searching for love and validation.Pornography / Lust became an addiction. My heart grew darker. What once felt like attention began to feel like chains. I was no longer searching for love—I was trapped in sin and shame. The more I gave myself away, the emptier I became.

On the outside, I appeared happy. I performed well at work. I smiled. I functioned. But inside, I was falling apart. I isolated myself from friends and family because I was ashamed of my addiction. I felt disgust, self-hatred, sickness, and deep depression. The emptiness became unbearable. I reached a point where I no longer wanted to live. I considered ending my life because I could not see a way out of the darkness.

Then one day at a gym in Dallas, I saw a man wearing a sweatshirt that said, “YESHUA – He Saves.” Something stirred inside of me. For about a month or two, I felt a strong urge to approach him, but fear and shame stopped me. I felt unworthy to speak to someone who openly represented God because I knew how I was living.

But one morning, at my absolute lowest point, I finally spoke to him. I simply said, “Nice shirt. What church do you go to?” He answered kindly. I tried to walk away quickly because I could barely look him in the eye. I felt like a sinner standing in front of a man of God. But he didn’t let the conversation end there. He pursued me with kindness, asked for my number, and invited me to his church (UPPERROOM)and Bible studies on Tuesday nights.

I had no idea that my mom had been praying for me and crying out to Jesus, carrying worry in her heart without ever saying a word to me. The very night I approached the man at the gym that morning, she had written my name on a piece of paper and given it to the intercessors to pray for me at a Catholic church in Corpus Christi, Texas.

God has been pursuing me over the past few months. Even a Jehovah’s Witness man named Thomas found my number in the local phone book—he called my number, texted me, prayed for me,and came to my house to tell me about Jesus—yet I kept running.

On March 24, 2026, I attended Bible study in Dallas. As the young people spoke about Jesus—about His love, His mercy, and how He saves us from all sin—I broke down. I cried the entire time. It felt like Jesus Himself was speaking directly to me, telling me that I was loved too. That I wasn’t too far gone. That I wasn’t forgotten.

After the Bible study, I walked out with the man from the gym—his name was Blake. He gently asked me, “If you died right now, where would your soul go?” I answered honestly, “I don’t know… maybe hell.” Then everything poured out of me. I confessed the life I had been living—the sexual sin, the self-abuse, the online meetings where I allowed myself to be used and degraded. I wept in the parking lot. Years of shame and bondage came spilling out.

We went to my truck, and he prayed over me. For the first time in my life, I sincerely asked Jesus to forgive me. In that moment, I experienced something I cannot fully explain. I felt embraced by God. It was as if Jesus wrapped His arms around me and said, “Your sins are forgiven, My child.” I felt peace wash over me—real peace. The chains that had bound me for years began to break.

Since that day, I have been attending Bible studies and church regularly. I still cry when I think about how much God loves me. The love I spent my whole life searching for—the love of a father—I found in Jesus. He satisfies my soul. He listens when I cry. He strengthens me when I am weak.

He said HELLO TO ME. He met me in my darkest place. He did not wait for me to clean myself up. He came into my darkness and pulled me out. He redeemed me and called me His child. I am a child of God now, and the enemy no longer has authority over my life. Jesus has set me free from addiction, pornography, lust, and the chains of shame.

One of the greatest miracles is that my relationship with my Dad has been restored after ten years of silence. Only Jesus can restore what is broken. He breaks chains. He heals wounds. He makes us new.

Now, my greatest desire is to love and worship Jesus all the days of my life. He has given me a reason to live. He satisfies me in a way nothing and no one else ever could. I trust Him with my healing, my future, and my heart.

This is how I know Jesus is alive: because He saved me. He redeemed me. He rescued me. He set me free. He forgave me. And He turned my darkness into life.

Thank you Jesus. I love you Jesus Christ my Lord and my savior.

God loves you too. “For God so love the world, that he gave his only son, Jesus , that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16.

He has been wanting you to call on his name.

YESHUA ✝️ He saves

Arkee Blu 4/27/2026 9:30pm Dallas Texas